Dee Gordon

It wasn't too long ago that the second base position was almost as boring and offensively deprived as the catcher spot. Not anymore. Gone are the days of half the league's second basemen being glove-first slap hitters. Sure, defense is still an important part of the game, but there's certainly been more of an emphasis on not having a black hole in your lineup. There's now a ton of power and speed at the position as you can see in the rankings below. A couple of Joses lead us off with a trio of youngsters rounding out the top…

Man, does Jerry Dipoto love to make trades or what? In what seems like his 463rd trade in his short tenure as the Mariners GM, he acquired speedster Dee Gordon and one million dollars in international slot money from the Miami Marlins for three minor leaguers that we'll get into later. This trade has two significant fantasy impacts. First, obviously, is Gordon, who is arguably the top stolen base threat in the majors.In three of the last four seasons, Gordon has led the National League in stolen bases and was on base to…

It can often be difficult to place into context how well (or how poorly) certain players have performed recently. A glance at ESPN’s Player Rater, which attempts to quantify a player’s overall fantasy value by analyzing their performance in each facet of the game, can focus targets for fantasy owners looking for help on the waiver wire. Of course, when dealing with small sample sizes, a player’s results can be fluky, but placement at or near the top of these lists could be indicative of a substantive change to a player’s…

Raise your hand if you want more dynasty rankings? That's right, we all love dynasty rankings. Last week we ranked both first base and third base. This week it's time for middle infielders. The second base rankings and analysis are below, and shortstops will be released tomorrow.Second base has been a headache this season. The elite options have been fine, but most of the other veterans seem to be having a down season. Luckily there have been some solid rookies like Ian Happ, and several other offensive minded options…

It can often be difficult to place into context how well (or how poorly) certain players have performed recently. A glance at ESPN’s Player Rater, which attempts to quantify a player’s overall fantasy value by analyzing their performance in each facet of the game, can focus targets for fantasy owners looking for help on the waiver wire. Of course, when dealing with small sample sizes, a player’s results can be fluky, but placement at or near the top of these lists could be indicative of a substantive change to a player’s…